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Text -- Revelation 7:3 (NET)

Strongs On/Off
Context
7:3 “Do not damage the earth or the sea or the trees until we have put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God.”
Parallel   Cross Reference (TSK)   ITL  

Names, People and Places, Dictionary Themes and Topics

Dictionary Themes and Topics: Vision | Tribe | Servant of the Lord | Servant | Seal | Righteous | REVELATION OF JOHN | MARK | Jesus, The Christ | Israel | God | Forehead | Angel | APOCALYPTIC LITERATURE, 1 | more
Table of Contents

Word/Phrase Notes
Robertson , Vincent , Wesley , JFB , Clarke , Defender , TSK

Word/Phrase Notes
Barnes , Poole , Haydock , Gill

Verse Notes / Footnotes
NET Notes

Verse Range Notes
TSK Synopsis , MHCC , Matthew Henry , Barclay , Constable , College

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Commentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per phrase)

Robertson: Rev 7:3 - -- Hurt not ( mē adikēsēte ). Prohibition with mē and the ingressive aorist active subjunctive of adikeō , not to begin to hurt.

Hurt not ( mē adikēsēte ).

Prohibition with mē and the ingressive aorist active subjunctive of adikeō , not to begin to hurt.

Robertson: Rev 7:3 - -- Till we shall have sealed ( achri sphragisōmen ). Temporal clause of indefinite action for the future with achri (sometimes achris hou or achri...

Till we shall have sealed ( achri sphragisōmen ).

Temporal clause of indefinite action for the future with achri (sometimes achris hou or achris hou an ) and the aorist subjunctive as in Rev 15:8; Rev 20:3, Rev 20:5 or the future indicative (Rev 17:7), usually with the notion of ascent (up to) rather than extent like mechri .

Robertson: Rev 7:3 - -- An ( modal) sometimes occurs, but it is not necessary. But there is no futurum exactum idea in the aorist subjunctive, simply "till we seal,"not "t...

An ( modal)

sometimes occurs, but it is not necessary. But there is no futurum exactum idea in the aorist subjunctive, simply "till we seal,"not "till we shall have sealed."

Robertson: Rev 7:3 - -- Upon their foreheads ( epi tōn metōpōn ). From Eze 9:4. Old word (meta , ōps , after the eye, above the eye, the space above or between the ...

Upon their foreheads ( epi tōn metōpōn ).

From Eze 9:4. Old word (meta , ōps , after the eye, above the eye, the space above or between the eyes), in N.T. only in the Apocalypse (Rev 7:3; Rev 9:4; Rev 13:16; Rev 14:1, Rev 14:9; Rev 17:5; Rev 20:4; Rev 22:4). For "the servants of God"(tous doulous tou theou ) who are to be thus marked linked with angels in the service of God see Rev 1:1; Rev 2:20; Rev 19:2, Rev 19:5; Rev 22:3, Rev 22:6.

Vincent: Rev 7:3 - -- In their foreheads Compare Exo 28:36-38; Eze 9:4.

In their foreheads

Compare Exo 28:36-38; Eze 9:4.

Wesley: Rev 7:3 - -- Other angels were joined in commission with him.

Other angels were joined in commission with him.

Wesley: Rev 7:3 - -- Secured the servants of God of the twelve tribes from the impending calamities; whereby they shall be as clearly distinguished from the rest, as if th...

Secured the servants of God of the twelve tribes from the impending calamities; whereby they shall be as clearly distinguished from the rest, as if they were visibly marked on their foreheads.

JFB: Rev 7:3 - -- By letting loose the destructive winds.

By letting loose the destructive winds.

JFB: Rev 7:3 - -- Parallel to Mat 24:31, "His angels . . . shall gather together His elect from the four winds." God's love is such, that He cannot do anything in the w...

Parallel to Mat 24:31, "His angels . . . shall gather together His elect from the four winds." God's love is such, that He cannot do anything in the way of judgment, till His people are secured from hurt (Gen 19:22). Israel, at the eve of the Lord's coming, shall be found re-embodied as a nation; for its tribes are distinctly specified (Joseph, however, being substituted for Dan; whether because Antichrist is to come from Dan, or because Dan is to be Antichrist's especial tool [ARETAS, tenth century], compare Gen 49:17; Jer 8:16; Amo 8:14; just as there was a Judas among the Twelve). Out of these tribes a believing remnant will be preserved from the judgments which shall destroy all the Antichristian confederacy (Rev 6:12-17), and shall be transfigured with the elect Church of all nations, namely, 144,000 (or whatever number is meant by this symbolical number), who shall faithfully resist the seductions of Antichrist, while the rest of the nation, restored to Palestine in unbelief, are his dupes, and at last his victims. Previously to the Lord's judgments on Antichrist and his hosts, these latter shall destroy two-thirds of the nation, one-third escaping, and, by the Spirit's operation through affliction, turning to the Lord, which remnant shall form the nucleus on earth of the Israelite nation that is from this time to stand at the head of the millennial nations of the world. Israel's spiritual resurrection shall be "as life from the dead" to all the nations. As now a regeneration goes on here and there of individuals, so there shall then be a regeneration of nations universally, and this in connection with Christ's coming. Mat 24:34; "this generation (the Jewish nation) shall not pass till all these things be fulfilled," which implies that Israel can no more pass away before Christ's advent, than Christ's own words can pass away (the same Greek), Mat 24:35. So exactly Zec 13:8-9; Zec 14:2-4, Zec 14:9-21; compare Zec 12:2-14; Zec 13:1-2. So also Eze 8:17-18; Eze 9:1-7, especially Eze 9:4. Compare also Eze 10:2 with Rev 8:5, where the final judgments actually fall on the earth, with the same accompaniment, the fire of the altar cast into the earth, including the fire scattered over the city. So again, Rev 14:1, the same 144,000 appear on Zion with the Father's name in their forehead, at the close of the section, the twelfth through fourteenth chapters, concerning the Church and her foes. Not that the saints are exempt from trial: Rev 7:14 proves the contrary; but their trials are distinct from the destroying judgments that fall on the world; from these they are exempted, as Israel was from the plagues of Egypt, especially from the last, the Israelite doors having the protecting seal of the blood-mark.

JFB: Rev 7:3 - -- The most conspicuous and noblest part of man's body; on which the helmet, "the hope of salvation," is worn.

The most conspicuous and noblest part of man's body; on which the helmet, "the hope of salvation," is worn.

Clarke: Rev 7:3 - -- Till we have sealed the servants of our God - There is manifestly an allusion to Eze 9:4 here. By sealing we are to understand consecrating the pers...

Till we have sealed the servants of our God - There is manifestly an allusion to Eze 9:4 here. By sealing we are to understand consecrating the persons in a more especial manner to God, and showing, by this mark of God upon them, that they were under his more immediate protection, and that nothing should hurt them. It was a custom in the east, and indeed in the west too, to stamp with a hot iron the name of the owner upon the forehead or shoulder of his slave

It is worthy of remark that not one Christian perished in the siege of Jerusalem; all had left the city, and escaped to Pella. This I have often had occasion to notice.

Defender: Rev 7:3 - -- Compare to Rev 9:4.

Compare to Rev 9:4.

Defender: Rev 7:3 - -- The "seal of the living God" (Rev 7:2) is, in one sense, the Holy Spirit (Eph 1:13; Eph 4:30) and, no doubt, this sealing ministry of the Holy Spirit ...

The "seal of the living God" (Rev 7:2) is, in one sense, the Holy Spirit (Eph 1:13; Eph 4:30) and, no doubt, this sealing ministry of the Holy Spirit will be active for all who will turn to Christ during the tribulation period, including the 144,000 Israelites. Nevertheless, this seal seems to be a special physical mark of some kind, perhaps the name of Christ (Rev 22:4), placed on the foreheads of those who believe, possibly by another mighty angel (Rev 7:2) or Christ. This will assure their eternal life and to preserve their physical lives through the terrible, coming judgments. They are to serve as God's special witnesses during the remaining years of the tribulation, and possibly in the millennial age to follow. They must be especially prepared for this ministry and therefore protected."

TSK: Rev 7:3 - -- Hurt not : Rev 6:6, Rev 9:4; Isa 6:13, Isa 27:8, Isa 65:8; Mat 24:22, Mat 24:31 till : Rev 14:1; Exo 12:13, Exo 12:23; Isa 26:20,Isa 26:21; Exo 9:4-6;...

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Commentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per Verse)

Barnes: Rev 7:3 - -- Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea ... - Let the winds be restrained until what is here designated shall be done. These destroying ang...

Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea ... - Let the winds be restrained until what is here designated shall be done. These destroying angels were commanded to suspend the work of destruction until the servants of God could be rendered secure. The division here, as in Rev 7:1, of the "earth, the sea, and the trees,"seems to include everything - water, land, and the productions of the earth. Nothing was to be injured until the angel should designate the true servants of God.

Till we have sealed the servants of our God - The use of the plural "we"seems to denote that he did not expect to do it alone. Who were to be associated with him, whether angels or human beings, he does not intimate; but the work was evidently such that it demanded the agency of more than one.

In their foreheads - See the notes on Rev 7:2; compare Eze 9:4-5. A mark thus placed on the forehead would be conspicuous, and would be something which could at once be recognized if destruction should spread over the world. The fulfillment of this is to be found in two things:

(a)\caps1     i\caps0 n something which would be conspicuous or prominent - so that it could be seen; and,

(b)\caps1     i\caps0 n the mark being of such a nature or character that it would be a proper designation of the fact that they were the true servants of God.

Poole: Rev 7:3 - -- A manifest allusion to Eze 9:4 , and, as some think, to the usage of some eastern countries, for masters to set their names upon the forehead of the...

A manifest allusion to Eze 9:4 , and, as some think, to the usage of some eastern countries, for masters to set their names upon the forehead of their slaves, by which they were known to be theirs, as we mark our sheep or other beasts. Men as vainly dispute what this seal should be, as what the t meant in Eze 9:1-11 , the mark set upon those that mourned for the abominations of Jerusalem. The place where they were to be sealed signified the end of their sealing to be not so much for confirmation, for which seals are used, as notification, to signify to others they belong to God; so as it was of the same use as the blood upon the two side-posts and the upper door-posts of the Israelites in Egypt, Exo 12:13 .

Haydock: Rev 7:3 - -- Hurt not the earth, &c. Some understand Christ himself, who gives his commands in this manner to the Angels; others, an Angel of a higher rank or or...

Hurt not the earth, &c. Some understand Christ himself, who gives his commands in this manner to the Angels; others, an Angel of a higher rank or order. ---

Till we seal the servants of our God in their foreheads, which may be expounded, let not persecutions and trials come upon them till they are strengthened by the spirit and grace of God, with which St. Paul sometimes says the servants of God are signed and sealed. See 2 Corinthians i. 22.; Ephesians i. 13. He alludes to the passages of Ezechiel (Chap. ix. 4.) where God bids and angel mark with the letter Tau the foreheads of those who should not be hurt by the judgments that were to fall upon Jerusalem; so God would protect the faithful Christians, who believe and put their trust in Christ crucified, and who from the first ages [centuries], in testimony of this faith, used to sign themselves by making the sign of the cross on their foreheads, of which the letter Tau was a figure or resemblance. See Tertullian, de lib. Corona militis. I beg the readers patience, if I here set down what I find in the great Synopsis Papismi, in folio, put out by Mr. Andrew Willet, and dedicated first to queen Elizabeth, and afterwards to king James the first. Among his demonstrations, as he calls them, that the pope is the antichrist, (Controv. iv. q. 10. p. 232 and 233) he tells us in plain terms, "that the sign of the cross is one of the visible signs of antichrist. And who," saith he, "hath taught the papists that the sign of the cross is to be borne or made on men's foreheads? And that with crossing the forehead we are preserved from dangers? The superstitious marks of the cross had their beginning from the beast's name, since the number of the beast's name in the Revelation of St. John is by these Greek letters, Greek: chxs. The first letter, Greek: ch, is a cross; the middle letter, Greek: x, (in Latin, X) is also a side long cross; and the last letter, Greek: s, contains both Greek: s and Greek: t of which the latter is called a headless cross;" and then Mr. Willet concludes in these words, "And thus it plainly appears, that the marks whereby the papists say they honour Christ, are rather a dishonour to him, and are in very deed the cognizance of antichrist." Such an ingenious, and at the same time learned fancy, may perhaps outvie even those we have cited out of Mr. Brightman [in the annotations on Chap. iii. 14-22.], and may be equally serviceable to any country parson on the fifth of November, or on any day when he shall think fit to hold forth against the pope or popery. I suppose that Mr. Willet did not know that the Christians in the first ages [centuries] (as all Catholics to this day) made so frequent use of the sign of the cross, as it is witnessed by Tertullian above two hundred years before even any Protestant pretended that the popes began to be antichrists, or the great antichrist. And this, says he, they do by a tradition from father to son. At every setting forward or going about any thing, at coming home or going out, at putting on our clothes, at going to bathe, to table, to light a candle, to bed, to sit down, to any thing, we make the sign of the cross on our foreheads. And this is a tradition. The like is witnessed by St. John Chrysostom, St. Cyril of Jerusalem, and many of the Fathers. At the same time that with our hand we make the sign of the cross, we say these words, "in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost;" the words used when any one is made a Christian, according to the command of Christ. So that the action itself puts us in mind that Jesus Christ died for us on the cross; and by the words, we make a profession of our Christian faith, that we believe in one God and three Persons. Can we do this too often? Dare we be ashamed of doing it? Was ever any thing more ridiculous than to call this in very deed the cognizance of antichrist? What must Mr. Willet have thought of the Protestants, or what can they think of him, and such like folio scribbers, to prove the popes the beast of St. John's Revelation? What must, I say, Mr. Willet think of the public liturgy, or the book of common prayer, approved and used by the Church of England in his time, and which ordains that the sign of the cross shall be made by the priest on the forehead of every one that is baptized? This, according to Mr. Willet, is (when any one is made a Christian) to give him the badge, and visible sign of antichrist, to the dishonour of Christ, and what in very deed is the cognizance of antichrist. (Witham)

Gill: Rev 7:3 - -- Saying, hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees,.... That is, as yet, for their commission was not contradicted, nor taken away by Christ; ...

Saying, hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees,.... That is, as yet, for their commission was not contradicted, nor taken away by Christ; and at the time appointed, at the blowing of the several trumpets, they let loose the winds, and let in the Goths, Hans, and Vandals, the Saracens and Turks into the empire, and after that poured out the vials of God's wrath upon the Romish antichrist: this retarding of them was but in appearance, that there might be an opportunity to show to John what care would be taken all along of the church of Christ, and true servants of the living God:

till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads; the servants of sin, Satan, and the beast of Rome, were took no notice nor care of; they were the persons to be hurt by the winds, signified by the earth, sea, and trees, even idolaters, small and great; but "the servants of our God", who serve him with grace in their hearts, from a principle of love, in the exercise of faith, without servile fear, and with reverence and godly fear, in righteousness and true holiness, and with a view to his glory; and are worshippers of him in spirit and in truth, being followers of the Lamb, whithersoever he goes; and so are the servants of his God, and their God; the sealing of them does not design the sealing of them with the seal of election, this was done in eternity; nor with the seal of the Spirit, which is common to all the saints in all ages; but it denotes the hiding and concealing, and so securing the saints amidst all the calamities of the empire, and throughout the whole time of the Romish apostasy, from first to last; and respects the time when the church fled into the wilderness, and was hid, and nourished with the hidden manna, for a time, and times, and half a time, Rev 12:14. Christ set a mark upon them, as was upon the houses of the Israelites, when the destroying angel passed through Egypt, and destroyed the firstborn in it; and as was upon the foreheads of those that sighed and cried in Jerusalem, when orders were given to slay young and old, Exo 12:23. Christ will have a people in the worst of times; he knows who are his, and he will take care of them; he has his chambers of protection to hide them in, till the indignation is over past: the sealers, "we", are either Father, Son, and Spirit, who are all jointly concerned for the welfare of the eject; or Christ and his ministering angels that attend him, whom he employs for the good and safety of the heirs of salvation: the seal with which these are sealed is the seal of the living God, the foreknowledge, love, care, and power of God; and the name of God, even Christ's Father's name, and their Father's name, in their foreheads; the new name of children of God, by and under which they are known and preserved by him: and this is said to be "in their foreheads", in allusion to servants, who used to be marked in their foreheads; hence they are called by Apuleius c "frontes literati"; and by Martial, a servant is called "fronte notatus" d: but then these were such who had committed faults, and this was done by way of punishment e; wherefore it can hardly be thought that the servants of God should be sealed, in allusion to them: but rather with reference to the mitre on the high priest's forehead, as some think; or it may be to Eze 9:4, and shows, that though these persons were hid and concealed from men, they were well known to God and Christ; nor were they ashamed to make a public and open confession of Christ before men, as did the true and faithful witnesses of Christ, the Waldenses and Albigenses, in the midst of the greatest darkness of Popery, and of danger from men; and who seem to be chiefly intended.

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Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: Rev 7:3 See the note on the word “servants” in 1:1.

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Commentary -- Verse Range Notes

TSK Synopsis: Rev 7:1-17 - --1 An angel seals the servants of God in their foreheads.4 The number of them that were sealed: of the tribes of Israel a certain number.9 Of all the ...

MHCC: Rev 7:1-8 - --In the figurative language of Scripture, the blowing of the four winds together, means a dreadful and general destruction. But the destruction is dela...

Matthew Henry: Rev 7:1-12 - -- Here we have, I. An account of the restraint laid upon the winds. By these winds we suppose are meant those errors and corruptions in religion which...

Barclay: Rev 7:1-3 - --Before we deal with this chapter in detail, it is better to set out the general picture behind it. John is seeing the vision of the last terrible day...

Barclay: Rev 7:1-3 - --This vision is expressed in conceptions of the world which were the conceptions of the days in which John wrote. The earth is a square, flat earth; ...

Barclay: Rev 7:1-3 - --Before the great tribulation smites the earth the faithful ones are to be marked with the seal of God. There are two points to note. (i) The angel wi...

Constable: Rev 4:1--22:6 - --III. THE REVELATION OF THE FUTURE 4:1--22:5 John recorded the rest of this book to reveal those aspects of the f...

Constable: Rev 7:1-17 - --C. Supplementary revelation of salvation in the Great Tribulation ch. 7 God led John to record what he s...

Constable: Rev 7:1-8 - --1. The sealing of 144,000 Israelites 7:1-8 The scene continues to be on earth. 7:1 The phrase "after this" (Gr. meta touto) indicates that what follow...

College: Rev 7:1-17 - --REVELATION 7 4. Interlude: The 144,000 Sealed for Salvation (7:1-17) The Book of Revelation contains three visions of the complete future from John'...

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Introduction / Outline

Robertson: Revelation (Book Introduction) THE REVELATION OF JOHN ABOUT a.d. 95 By Way of Introduction Difficulty in the Problem Perhaps no single book in the New Testament presents so ...

JFB: Revelation (Book Introduction) AUTHENTICITY.--The author calls himself John (Rev 1:1, Rev 1:4, Rev 1:9; Rev 2:8). JUSTIN MARTYR [Dialogue with Trypho, p. 308] (A.D. 139-161) quotes ...

JFB: Revelation (Outline) TITLE: SOURCE AND OBJECT OF THIS REVELATION: BLESSING ON THE READER AND KEEPER OF IT, AS THE TIME IS NEAR: INSCRIPTION TO THE SEVEN CHURCHES: APOSTOL...

TSK: Revelation (Book Introduction) The obscurity of this prophecy, which has been urged against its genuineness, necessarily results from the highly figurative and symbolical language i...

TSK: Revelation 7 (Chapter Introduction) Overview Rev 7:1, An angel seals the servants of God in their foreheads; Rev 7:4, The number of them that were sealed. of the tribes of Israel a ...

Poole: Revelation 7 (Chapter Introduction) CHAPTER 7

MHCC: Revelation (Book Introduction) The Book of the Revelation of St. John consists of two principal divisions. 1. Relates to " the things which are," that is, the then present state of...

MHCC: Revelation 7 (Chapter Introduction) (Rev 7:1-3) A pause between two great periods. (Rev 7:4-8) The peace, happiness, and safety of the saints, as signified by an angel's sealing 144, 00...

Matthew Henry: Revelation (Book Introduction) An Exposition, with Practical Observations, of The Revelation of St. John the Divine It ought to be no prejudice to the credit and authority of this b...

Matthew Henry: Revelation 7 (Chapter Introduction) The things contained in this chapter came in after the opening of the six seals, which foretold great calamities in the world; and before the sound...

Barclay: Revelation (Book Introduction) INTRODUCTION TO THE REVELATION OF JOHN The Strange Book When a student of the New Testament embarks upon the study of the Revelation he feels him...

Barclay: Revelation 7 (Chapter Introduction) Rescue And Reward (Rev_7:1-3) The Winds Of God (Rev_7:1-3 Continued) The Living God (Rev_7:1-3 Continued) The Seal Of God (Rev_7:4-8) The Numbe...

Constable: Revelation (Book Introduction) Introduction Historical background The opening verses of the book state that "John" wr...

Constable: Revelation (Outline) Outline I. The preparation of the prophet ch. 1 A. The prologue of the book 1:1-8 ...

Constable: Revelation Revelation Bibliography Abbott-Smith, George. A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament. Edinburgh: T. & ...

Haydock: Revelation (Book Introduction) THE APOCALYPSE OF ST. JOHN, THE APOSTLE. INTRODUCTION. Though some in the first ages [centuries] doubted whether this book was canonical, and ...

Gill: Revelation (Book Introduction) INTRODUCTION TO REVELATION That this book was written by the Apostle and Evangelist John, is clear not only from the express mention of his name, a...

Gill: Revelation 7 (Chapter Introduction) INTRODUCTION TO REVELATION 7 This chapter contains a vision seen at the end of the sixth, and at the opening of the seventh seal, which expresses t...

College: Revelation (Book Introduction) PREFACE This commentary on the Revelation of John has been prepared for general readers of the Bible who desire to deepen their understanding of God'...

College: Revelation (Outline) OUTLINE I. PROLOGUE - 1:1-20 A. Introduction to the Prophecy - 1:1-3 B. Sender - 1:4a C. Recipients - 1:4b D. Prescript - 1:4c-5a E. ...

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